Beverage bottles are conventionally formed with a flange or shoulder that projects out from the neck. An economical carrier designed to support such bottles employs so-called starburst support tabs spaced about bottle neck openings in a carrier support panel. When the panel is pushed down over bottles aligned with the neck openings, the tabs are pivoted up by the bottle until they snap into place with their edges engaging the underside of the bottle shoulders. A handle, usually in the form of finger holes in the panel, enables a person to grasp and lift the carrier and its supported bottles.
While this basic design is functional with relatively lightweight bottles, it must be strengthened to enable it to resist tearing or excessive downward bowing when subjected to the more severe lifting and carrying stresses encountered when dealing with large bottles, such as two-liter bottles. A further problem aside from the ability to support large heavy bottles is the difficulty in designing a carrier containing four bottles. The weight and size of the bottles causes them to rotate when lifted by the carrier handle, giving the person carrying them the feeling that the bottles are swinging. In addition, the usual finger holes used for lifting the package are too small to allow the fingers to obtain the secure and comfortable grip desired when lifting a heavy load. The elongated handle panels which have been provided in some carriers designed to support large beverage bottles are not desirable since they extend above the tops of the bottles, interfering with the ability to stack the carriers.
It is an object of the invention to provide a bottle support carrier which is capable of supporting severe loads, such as loads caused by lifting four large heavy beverage bottles, without tearing the carrier and without rotation of the bottles. Additional objects are to provide a carrier of this type which is economical to produce, simple to apply and capable of utilizing a strong comfortable handle in the top panel.